Assemblyman Matt Simpson (R,C-Horicon) attended a press conference on the Million Dollar Staircase in the Capitol today to advocate for increased state funding for local roads, bridges, and culverts. Simpson stood alongside Assembly Minority Leader Will Barclay, Assemblyman Phil Palmesano (R,C-Corning), Senate Minority Leader Robert Ortt, Sen. Tom O’Mara (R,C-Big Flats), and their Senate and Assembly Colleagues. The legislators were joined by highway department representatives from across the state.

Deterioration of local infrastructure raises concern for the safety of residents, local law enforcement and first responders. The “Local Roads Are Essential” advocacy campaign also stressed the importance of fully funding the Consolidated Local Street and Highway Improvement program (CHIPS), “Extreme Winter Recovery” (EWR), PAVE -NY, and BRIDGE-NY. Today, they called on Gov. Hochul to increase CHIPS funding by $200 million for a total of $738.1 million annually and increase the EWR program by $70 million to $270 million annually.

“As a resident of the North Country, I see first-hand how our local roads and infrastructure are easily neglected. The bloated state budget gets astronomically higher each year and lacks the proper funding directed toward our local roads throughout the state. As the prices of construction materials continue to rise, the budgets for CHIPS and EWR need to offset those costs, which will then create thousands of statewide highway jobs. The safety of our roads is crucial for school buses, local law enforcement and first responders as well as our economy. Local roads are essential to public safety, increase the funding for CHIPS and let’s get our roads repaired,” said Simpson.